The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Flaked cereal products are a staple food item in many countries. The flakes are generally made of wheat, corn, oats, and the like, which provide nutritious foodstuffs to consumers. In recent years, manufacturers have become interested in providing flaked food materials that extend beyond the traditional carbohydrate-based flakes, so that other nutritious food constituents can be provided. In particular, many manufacturers would like to provide flaked food material products that include a larger amount of protein.
However, providing high protein flakes has been problematic. Both taste and mouthfeel parameters, which are necessary to provide a desirable product, have not been met when the amount of protein is increased. Additionally, high protein flakes prepared using conventional cooking techniques commonly provide flakes that are fragile and that contain multiple points of weakness, ultimately leading to unwanted cereal flake breakage.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for obtaining high protein flakes that have desirable sensorial and texture properties and that are not subject to undesirable breakage.